Feb. 3, 2004
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue's men's track and field team jumped two spots this week in the Trackwire 25 poll and are currently tied for tenth in the nation with three other squads (Tennesssee, Baylor and USC). The Boilermakers, who were ranked No. 12 in last week's poll, are fourth among all Big Ten teams.
Seniors Keith McBride and Scott Hecht along with junior Nedzad Mulabegovic have continued to place among the Trackwire's Dandy Dozen in each of their respective events for a third-straight week.
Mulabegovic, who is currently ranked fourth in the shot put, is coming off a school record-breaking throw of 64 feet, 5 1/4 inches (19.64 meters) against Indiana State last Friday. His effort, along with several other Boilermaker triumphs, helped Purdue retain control of the Edmonds Cup rivalry trophy.
McBride and Hecht both moved up in the Dandy Dozen's weight throw rankings this week, capturing the No. 2 and No. 7 spots. For three consecutive weeks, Hecht's and McBride's tosses have been over the NCAA provisional qualifying standard of 19.50. Against the Sycamores, Hecht threw for a season-best launch of 68-3 3/4 to top McBride's throw of 67-7.
Purdue's men's and women's track and field teams will split up this weekend to compete at the Husker Invitational in Lincoln, Neb., and the Indiana Invitational in Bloomington. A majority of the Boilermakers will be traveling south, including Mulabegovic and sprinters T'Nita Waters and Kim Jordan.
Heading in the opposite direction will be an all-star squad led by McBride and Hecht. They wll be accompanied by two-time All-American sprinter Kenneth Baxter, distance runners, Lindsay Zinn, Kara Lahey, Amber Ferner, Michael Ciccarelli and Kyle Orender, as well as fellow launchers Igor Kirin, Tiffany Britten, Astin Steward and Courtney Magnuson.
The Boilermaker throwers will face tough competition from the nationally ranked Cornhuskers who are led by the Dandy Dozen's No. 1 shot put tandem of Carl Mysercough and Becky Breisch. Mysercough maintains top billing in the poll, despite not having competed this indoor season; however, Breisch is coming off an outstanding performance at the Tiger Classic, where she registered her third NCAA automatic-qualifying mark. Breisch's toss of 55-1 1/2 also earned her Big 12 Conference athlete of the week honors.
Purdue's men's and women's track and field teams will compete next in New York City at the Armory Collegiate Invitational on Feb. 13 and 14. The Boilermakers return to West Lafayette on Saturday, Feb. 21 to play host to the multi-team Boilermaker Invitational. Purdue's final home indoor meet starts at 9 a.m.